Glory take on Amazulu

Perth Glory are set to kick off their preseason tour of South Africa, facing ABSA Premiership side Amazulu in Durban.

Perth Glory are set to kick off their preseason tour of South Africa, facing ABSA Premiership side Amazulu in Durban.

The trip has given Ian Ferguson to put his side through some intensive training drills in preparation for the new Hyundai A-League season, and the Glory coach will look to give his new recruits a starting berth.

Chris Harold, Nicky Ward and Adrian Zahra will form a pacy attacking midfield trio, while Scott Jamieson, Michael Thwaite, Steve Pantelidis and Josh Risdon making up a highly promising backline.

Perth skipper Jacob Burns said he-s looking forward to playing quality opposition in front of what is expected to be a very noisy 10,000 crowd at Mbombela Stadium, where Amazulu recently hosted EPL giants Manchester United.

“I-m expecting a tough encounter against Amazulu,” Burns said.

“We know they will be physically strong and quick and are a good overall side who finished seventh in their league last term.

“It-s a great opportunity for us to have another game in which we can try new things in terms of tactics and formations, bed the new players in and work on our combinations all over the pitch. You can only do that by playing games against decent quality opposition.

“The fans here tend to make a lot of noise with their vuvuzelas and so on, so there-s always a good vibe and I-m sure that-ll be the case for this game.”

Perth-s three-match South Africa tour will also see the West Australian side take on Platinum All-Stars and Bidvest Wits.